Posting days: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

Friday

The one dog demolition machine continues on her merry way. Her enthusiasm for big prey is unabated; her latest prize is a plastic garden chair. On one of my necessarily very frequent checks, I discover her in her stolen goods cache, lying facing the chair with a quizzical, ‘How did you get here?’ expression. But a row of little tooth marks along the top of the chair’s back gives her away.

S., daughter of B. next door is visiting. B, who loves animals, is witness to many of Hairy One’s deeds. “She destroys everything”, he comments, bemused as he surveys   the cluttered dirt track which is now our garden.

“I’m amazed”, he continues, “at how she finds so much to entertain herself with. And she’s such a confident little thing.”

He is surprised that a dog who can’t see is so at ease trotting around or over all the debris which she has scattered across the ex-lawn.

Ignoring all accounts of Wicked Whiskers’ exploits S. says, “She’s beautiful.”

Ignoring all three of us, Isis batters the base of the red plastic washing basket which she so much enjoyed dismembering last week.

I’ve not known another dog who will happily play for hours outside on her own. Isis must have led a very solitary existence before she was rescued, and, although she is very gradually bonding, she is a very independent dog.

A deprived little border collie I had years ago had no idea how to play when she came to us, and a friend spent hours crawling round the room with a dumb bell in his mouth before she picked up the idea and joined in!

Isis, though, has taught herself to play. And it’s lovely to watch her.

Isis came from the Aeza cat and dog rescue and adoption centre in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@aeza.org or  www.dogwatchuk.com